School counselors represent an integral part of a quality educational program designed to meet the personal, social, academic, and career development needs of today's students. Michigan school districts are experiencing and reporting a significant shortage of qualified and appropriately credentialed school counselors. A statewide initiative was…

This article addresses issues of chemical dependency treatment of individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing and reports on specialized treatment approaches developed by the Minnesota Chemical Dependency Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals. This population faces special barriers to treatment and recovery including lack of recognition…

This report examines career development approaches and practices implemented at six West Virginia school-to-work (STW) sites. The sites were the original local partnerships funded by the state's federal STW implementation grant in 1996. Site visits gathered information needed for development of a comprehensive career development self-assessment…

The Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico-Rural Systemic Initiative (UCAN-RSI) supports standards-based reform in mathematics, technology, and science education for rural students in its states. This guide provides UCAN schools and communities with a set of measures that describe the location of a school/community on the developmental continuum of…

This action research project developed and implemented a program to improve student knowledge of social sciences and application in the real world. The targeted population consisted of fourth grade students in a K-5 accelerated elementary school in a midwestern state. The problem was documented through the results of standardized tests which were…

This paper is part of a broader study considering effects of welfare reform on households in rural areas. This report describes the findings of qualitative research, which examined welfare reform implementation and availability of services in 12 rural communities in Alabama, Arkansas, California, and Maine. The study sites were diverse in terms of…

This workbook is part of a series devoted to all areas of charter-school development. The second of the series, this volume focuses on regulatory issues, such as special-education requirements, civil-rights regulations, federal and state laws and regulations, and requirements for parent involvement. The text is divided into four sections. Chapter…

This learning module/handbook explains the rationale behind school-based budgeting (SBB)--the transfer of authority and responsibility for allocating a portion of school operating funds from the central school district to individual schools--and suggests practical implementation strategies. According to part I, SBB comes in many forms. Each school…

This manual for participants in a teleconference on independent living for adults with disabilities provides an agenda for the teleconference, a list of trainers, and a copy of Chapters 1 and 2 of Title VII of the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998. The objectives of the teleconference were to assist Centers for Independent Living (CILs) and…

This paper describes a philosophy and framework for classroom management and school discipline which represents a citizenship approach, based on the Bill of Rights, that teaches students about their rights and responsibilities for living and learning in a democratic society. The Judicious Discipline framework outlined in the paper could work well…

This digest offers community college academic leaders a synopsis of the key components necessary for building a successful developmental education instructional framework. Specific emphasis is placed on program structure, faculty, and program improvement. Developmental education is defined as "courses or services provided for the purpose of…

As revealed by the mean scores of the countries participating in the Performance Improvement through Strategy Analysis (PISA) assessment of reading literacy, Finland shows the highest reading literacy performance in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation Development (OECD) Finland's performance is significantly higher than that of any other…

This manual presents information on designing and delivering a summer learning program whose goal is to provide an opportunity for students to experience academic success and positive self-esteem through reading fluency and comprehension. Sections of the manual address background and policies (on student and teacher selection, student promotion,…

This guide contains all of the information, support and tools that community members need to implement "Talking About Mental Illness" in their community--an awareness program proven to be effective in bringing about positive change in young people's knowledge about mental illness, and in reducing stigma that surrounds mental illness. The…

President George W. Bush's "No Child Left Behind" plan for educational improvement is based on four principles: accountability for results; local control and flexibility; expanded parental choice; and effective and successful programs. The program is dedicated to lifting up all teachers so that these teachers can, in turn, lift up their…